1. Statement of the Technical Field
The invention concerns control systems and methods for providing a simulation environment having a simulation user interface, wherein the simulation environment includes hardware and/or software configured for simulating Fieldbus devices.
2. Background
There are many industrial plant control systems (IPCSs) known in the art. One such IPCS is shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the IPCS 100 is comprised of a control system 102, H1 links 1261, 1262, and Fieldbus Field (FF) devices 122, 124. The control system 102 typically has a distributed network configuration, i.e., there are application specific modules 104, 106, 108, 114, 116, 120 connected to each other and an operator computer system 112 via a common communications network 110. More specifically, the control system is comprised of a server 104, a database 106, a main controller 108, an operator computer system 112, a supervisory controller 120, and Fieldbus Interface Modules (FIMS) 114, 116. The listed devices 104, . . . , 108, 112, . . . , 116, 120 are communicatively connected to each other via the common communications network 110 (e.g., an Ethernet Network). As such, the devices 114, 116, 120 include common communications network (CCN) buffers 140, 142, 144. Each of the CCN buffers 140, 142, 144 includes memory used to temporarily store data before it is sent from a first device 114, 116, 120 to a second device 104, 106, 108, 112, . . . , 116, 120 over the common communications network 110.
The control system 102 is communicatively connected to the FF devices 122, 124 via the H1 links 1261, 1262. The phrase “H1 links”, as used herein, refers to communications links defining an I/O network (e.g., a FOUNDATION FIELDBUS™ network). The phrase “FOUNDATION FIELDBUS™”, as used herein, refers to an all-digital, serial, two-way communications system that serves as a network (e.g., a location area network) for industrial distributed network devices 104, . . . , 108, 112, . . . , 116, 120 and FF devices 122, 124. The FF devices 122, 124 include, but are not limited to, motors, pumps, gauges, valves, transmitters, actuators, boilers, distiller units, and sensors. Each of the FF devices 122, 124 can include an H1 link buffer 136 as shown in FIG. 1. Each of the H1 link buffers 136 is memory used to temporarily store data before it is sent from a first device to second device over an H1 link 1261, 1262. Similarly, each of the FIMS 114, 116 includes an H1 link buffer 130, 132.
Despite certain advantages of the conventional IPCS 100, it suffers from certain drawbacks. For example, the industrial equipment 122, 124 often includes a large number of devices. As such, it is impractical to use the actual IPCS system including all of the above listed devices for purposes of control strategy configuration, operator training, and Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT). For example, the FAT execution is difficult since a portion of the system control resides in the FF devices 122, 124. As such, it is logistically impossible to have thousands of FF devices 122, 124 shipped to a FAT facility and connected to a control network 102 to test a particular IPCS application. Further, if the actual FF devices 122, 124 are used in a FAT, then delays in the construction of the IPCS 100 on site may occur.
In view of the forgoing, there remains a need for a practical system and method that can facilitate control strategy configuration, operator training, and FAT. The system and method needs to be capable of simulating some or all of the network elements and Fieldbus devices of the IPCS 100. The system and method also needs to be capable of providing a user interface for displaying simulation specific content.